Human Rights Watch (HRW) expressed deep concern April 7 over the continued detention of Taiwanese publisher Li Yanhe in China since 2023, citing violations of freedom of expression, access to information, and the right to a fair trial. For nearly two years, no official information was released about his case until Chinese authorities revealed in March that he had been secretly sentenced to an unspecified term.
HRW emphasized that Li’s detention is part of a broader pattern of transnational repression and intimidation by the Chinese government. The organization has called on China to immediately release Li Yanhe, grant him access to legal counsel and family, and uphold its obligations under international human rights law.
Li, who writes under the pen name Fu Cha, is the editor-in-chief of Gusa Publishing, a Taiwan-based company known for producing books that critically examine the Chinese Communist Party (CPP) and cover politically sensitive topics, such as the Tiananmen Square massacre and human rights abuses in Xinjiang, subjects effectively censored in mainland China.
Although Li was born in China, he moved to Taiwan in 2009 to establish Gusa Publishing. In 2023, he obtained Taiwanese citizenship, a process that required him to return to mainland China to formally cancel his household registration. During his visit to Shanghai, he was detained by Chinese police on allegations of “engaging criminal activities to incite secession.”
In March 2025, authorities confirmed that Li was secretly sentenced in February, following what they described as an “open trial.” However, no court documents or evidence that due process was followed have been made public, not at the time of his arrest nor since. Chinese authorities have refused to provide further details about his case, citing “respect for the family’s wishes.”
Reports suggest that Li’s family was threatened to prevent them from revealing the length of his sentence; they were allegedly warned that if they released any information, he could face a harsher punishment or even be “eliminated.” In response, the Taiwanese government condemned the lack of transparency, but because China does not recognize dual nationality, Taiwanese authorities have been denied consular access to him.
Li’s secret sentencing has drawn comparisons to the 2015 disappearances of five Hong Kong booksellers, who were abducted and secretly charged for distributing banned political literature. Lam Wing-kee, one of the five, who was given temporary leave to return to Hong Kong and fled from there to Taiwan where he resettled, commented on Li’s situation: “From the perspective of mainland China, they believe you’re from where you were born. Li published books in Taiwan that violated the laws of his own country.”
According to Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, at least 15 Taiwanese citizens have been detained or put on trial in China since July 2024, and another 51 have been interrogated by border officials. Analysts warn that China’s recent expansion of its Anti-Espionage Law and Law on Guarding State Secrets show a wider effort to punish people who speak out, suppress freedom of speech in Taiwan, and stop Chinese-speaking writers globally from expressing critical views.
From JURIST, April 9. Used with permission.
Image: Gusa Publishing
